


The Calm After the Storm

by ilsafausts (phoenix_cry)



Category: Mission: Impossible, Mission: Impossible (Movies)
Genre: Bruises, Developing Friendships, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Male-Female Friendship, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Post-Mission, Post-Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018), Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2019-10-07
Packaged: 2020-11-27 00:56:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20939642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenix_cry/pseuds/ilsafausts
Summary: After the events of Fallout, some team members struggle with what happened, while others are there to lend support. As friends do.





	The Calm After the Storm

In the slowly setting sun of a chilly day in Kashmir, Ilsa watched Benji’s hunched over form fold further in on itself to brace against a cold gust of wind. Sitting on the steps leading up to the provisional hut they’d been provided for the night, he made quite the miserable figure. Even from her position beside the small bed Ethan was currently resting on - hopefully, in a dreamless slumber - she could imagine the dark bruises blooming on his throat, very similar to her own, but not quite. How different the feeling of a rope around your neck could be, she mused.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she could make out Luther, reclined in an old chair and looking bone-tired, also keeping an eye on their friend.   
Ilsa slightly turned her head, and their eyes met, worry mirrored in their gazes. Ilsa threw him a, what she hoped to be, reassuring smile and silently got up from her chair to join Benji out on the steps. 

Luther cast her a thankful look and finally allowed his eyes to droop shut, reassured that his friend was in good hands.   
Ilsa felt humbled by his trust. 

She made sure that her boots made sufficient noise on the old floorboards, in order to alert Benji to her presence, before she took a seat beside him. 

“Hey,” she greeted but otherwise remained silent. 

“Hey,” he returned her greeting, his voice hoarse and battered, but Ilsa didn’t allow any of the sympathy and horror she felt to show on her face. She just knew that was neither what he needed, nor wanted right now.

They remained like that, seated beside each other in silent understanding, their eyes fixed on the slowly setting sun in the distance. As the shadows grew longer, and the last warmth from the sun slowly faded away behind the mountains, Benji finally moved, his shoulders rising with a deep and weary sigh, before slumping back down in defeat. His face turned in her direction, but he still didn’t quite meet her gaze. 

“Thank you,” he murmured, voice barely more than a whisper, but Ilsa could hear the appreciation for her silent support carrying on his words. 

Ilsa just gave him a soft smile and allowed her left hand to settle briefly on his forearm to give it a gentle squeeze. “I’m glad you’re okay, Benji,” she said and pointedly ignored the tears shooting into his eyes at her words. He hurriedly wiped at the corners of his eyes, eliminating any further evidence of his supposed weakness. “Thanks,” he croaked.

“I’ll see you inside,” she said and got up, giving him the time and space to regain his composure. 

He nodded, acknowledging her words, and Ilsa turned to head back inside, into the slightly warmer surroundings of their shared little hut. 

The light was dim, the illumination previously provided by the sun now almost entirely gone. Only one little lamp on a table in the center of the room was doing its utmost to face the encroaching darkness, yet Ilsa could still make out Ethan’s open and alert eyes, as soon as she stepped inside. 

“Hi,” she whispered, not wanting to disturb the sleeping Luther. 

“Hi,” he said, voice just as soft, and a warm smile on his lips as he took in her form. As soon as she was close enough to touch, he reached out and gently grasped her hand. “And thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being there for him when I couldn’t be,” he simply answered, his chin raising to point vaguely in Benji’s direction. 

Ilsa’s eyes locked onto his, as she allowed their fingers to tangle together. “Anytime,” she promised, and Ethan’s smile widened further as he realized what her promise meant. 

“Welcome to the team,” he murmured and lifted their joined hands to press a gentle kiss against her knuckles, sealing something unspoken and yet openly acknowledged between them. 

“I can’t wait.”

They both knew she wasn’t just talking about future missions together, but a shared future laid out at their feet. 

~fin

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys, I hope you're all well and that you enjoyed this tiny little ficlet. 
> 
> If you have any fic prompts you'd like me to do, please leave a comment - my muse will be thankful for new inspiration! 
> 
> Take care, lovelies!


End file.
